Ken Smith, semi-retired American expat, living in Mexico for seven years after five years in France, a year in Denmark and another year bouncing around Europe — Italy, Switzerland, Germany, UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Sweden, Croatia and Romania. Here, for travelers, expats and potential expats, you will find news, experiences and advice.

Post navigation

Counting with your fingers in France

This is certainly not a problem of global importance, but when living in France, I found that hand gestures are not always what I learned back home. Hand signs for numbers are not the same as in America. Here’s the issue: Americans start counting with their index finger, while the French start with the thumb.

No big deal, you say, well consider this: After lunch with a friend, I said to the waiter as he walked by, “Un café, si’l vous plaît,” intending to order only one cup of coffee. The waiter saw the two of us and to confirm he said, “Deux?” I then held up my index finger and said, “Non, un.” So, my hand gesture trumped my bad accent and he shortly brought us two cups of coffee. To emphasize that I wanted only one cup of coffee, I should have held up my thumb only.

OK, so it’s not a big deal. My friend changed her mind and decided to have coffee after all.

Of course, you should verify my experience. It is entirely possible that I am wrong.

My son’s book

"With this book, Justin Smith turns the world of Leibniz scholarship upside down. Others have argued for the centrality of Leibniz's views on language and logic, or on physics and mathematics, or on theology, but Smith shows us how to read this key figure in the history of modern thought through his biology. This learned, original, and exciting book is obligatory reading for anyone interested in the origins of modern philosophy." -- Daniel Garber, Princeton University

Buy my book

Waltzing at the Doomsday Ball: The Best of Joe Bageant, available through Amazon-US. For this book, I wrote an introduction and brief biography, and selected 25 of Joe's essays published online from 2004 through 2010. Proceeds from sales of this book will go to Joe's favorite charities.

Quotes

"Leaving America is like losing twenty pounds and finding a new girlfriend."
-- Phil Ochs

"I met a lot of people in Europe. I even encountered myself."
-- James Baldwin

"Like all great travellers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen."
-- Benjamin Disraeli